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Florida law has specific formal requirements for a will to be valid. The basic rules are set by Florida Statute § 732.502, with additional self-proving affidavit requirements under Fla. Stat. § 732.503. Failure to meet any of these requirements can invalidate the entire will, sending the estate into intestate succession or triggering expensive litigation.
This guide covers the six requirements a Florida will must meet, plus the self-proving affidavit that lets the will be admitted to probate without calling the witnesses to testify.
Florida does not recognize oral wills. The will must be typewritten or handwritten and physically reduced to writing.
The testator must sign at the END of the document. Signatures in the margin or after the witnesses' signatures don't satisfy the statute.
Both witnesses must be present at the same time when the testator signs.
The two witnesses must each sign in the testator's presence and in each other's presence.
Or an emancipated minor under Florida law.
Sound mind — understands the nature of property, the natural objects of bounty, and the consequences of the disposition.
Under Fla. Stat. § 732.502, a Florida will must: (1) be in writing; (2) be signed by the testator at the end (or by another person at the testator’s direction and in the testator’s presence); (3) be signed in the presence of TWO competent witnesses; (4) the witnesses must sign in the presence of the testator and in the presence of each other; (5) the testator must be at least 18 years old (or an emancipated minor); and (6) the testator must be of sound mind at signing.
Two. Florida requires two witnesses to be present together when the testator signs the will, and the two witnesses must each sign the will in the presence of the testator and in the presence of each other (Fla. Stat. § 732.502(1)(b)). Florida law calls this ‘presence’ requirement strict — if the witnesses signed at different times or out of each other’s presence, the will may be invalid.
Not for basic validity, but YES for it to be ‘self-proving’ under Fla. Stat. § 732.503. A self-proving will is admitted to probate without calling the witnesses to testify. The notarized self-proving affidavit dramatically simplifies probate. Wills without a self-proving affidavit are still valid but require the witnesses to be located and to provide testimony or affidavits, which can delay probate and complicate matters if witnesses have died or moved.
Only partially. Florida recognizes handwritten changes to a TYPED will under specific circumstances, but Florida does NOT recognize purely handwritten wills (called ‘holographic wills’) unless they meet all of the formal requirements — typed or written, signed by the testator at the end, signed by two witnesses present together, etc. A will written entirely by hand with no witnesses is invalid in Florida (Fla. Stat. § 732.502(3)).
No. Florida does not recognize oral wills (sometimes called ‘nuncupative wills’). All wills must be in writing under Fla. Stat. § 732.502(1)(a). The narrow exceptions some states recognize for soldiers and sailors do not apply in Florida.
A self-proving affidavit under Fla. Stat. § 732.503. The testator and both witnesses sign a separate affidavit before a notary public, stating that the will was executed as required by law. The notary’s seal makes the will ‘self-proving’ — meaning it can be admitted to probate without calling the witnesses to testify. Self-proving affidavits are nearly always included in attorney-drafted Florida wills.
The will is invalid and the estate is administered as if there was no will (intestate succession under Fla. Stat. § 732.101 and following). This means Florida law — not the testator — decides distribution. Common causes of invalidation include missing witnesses, witnesses not signing in the testator’s presence, no self-proving affidavit when the witnesses can’t be located later, and prior wills that were not properly revoked.
Yes, through either a ‘codicil’ (a separate document amending the original will) or by signing a new will that revokes the prior one. Both must meet the same § 732.502 formalities as the original will. Florida allows partial amendments through handwritten interlineations in some circumstances, but this is risky and often invalidates the entire will. Best practice: sign a new will or a properly-executed codicil.
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